The Cap – Generally, the mortarboard or Oxford cap is worn with all degrees, although an
Elizabethan-style soft cap is used with some doctoral attire. Black tassels are most often
used, but many schools have adopted the practice of using tassels matching the hood colors.
Doctors and presidents of institutions frequently wear a gold tassel. Degree candidates wear
their tassels on the right, shifting them to the left when diplomas are received.
The Hood – The colors of the hood reveal the level of a degree, the major field of learning in
which the degree was awarded and the institution by which the degree was conferred. The
all-encompassing velvet trim denotes the field of learning, while the silk lining of the hood
includes the colors of the institution, which granted the highest degree held by the wearer.
The Gwynedd Mercy University hood, for example, is lined in gold with a red chevron.
Arts, Letters, Humanities............... White
Business.........................................Drab
Economics...................................Copper
Education...............................Light Blue
Engineering.................................Orange
Fine Arts..................................... Brown
Law............................................. Purple
Library Science............................ Lemon
Medicine....................................... Green
Music..............................................Pink
Nursing...................................... Apricot
Oratory..................................Silver Gray
Philosophy.......................................Blue
Public Health.............................. Salmon
Physical Education................ Sage Green
Science.........................................Yellow
Social Science............................... Citron
Theology......................................Scarlet
The Chain of Office
The wearing of a badge or “jewel” of office is a custom rooted in antiquity. Medallions
wrought in gold or silver, often worked in enamel and set in precious stones or suspended
from gold, gem-encrusted chains, became, in the Middle Ages, an accepted element
of civil and academic ceremonial garb much as a pendant crucifix or Episcopal ring
denotes religious rank. Adhering to the custom of many European universities, American
educational institutions have adopted a badge or “collar” of office as part of the president’s
dress on ceremonial occasions.
The chain of office of the President of Gwynedd Mercy University is made of sterling silver
and red acrylic. In the front hangs the medallion which carries the coat of arms of the
University flanked by the inscription “Gwynedd Mercy” and surmounted with a sterling
silver scroll bearing the motto of the University: “Veritas et Misericordia.” Above the
inscription scroll is the Crown of Glory and above this on the shield is engraved “1948,”
the founding date of the University.
The chain itself consists of eight frames alternating with seven Mercy Crosses. Each frame is
surmounted by the Crown of Glory, which rises from the cap and veil of the Sisters of Mercy.
The six frames on either side of the founding date depict the major academic disciplines of
the University. On the left are Education, Allied Health Sciences, Humanities and Liberal
Arts. On the right are Nursing, Natural Science, Business Administration and Computer
Science. The back of the chain shows two pairs of griffins facing each other. The griffin